Weather
Warm, largely drier pattern for much of the Heartland
A storm system moving into the eastern U.S. will linger through the weekend along the middle and northern Atlantic Coast, generating widespread showers.
Meanwhile, a slow-moving disturbance currently crossing the Northwest will effectively stall over the central and southern Plains, producing as much as 2 to 5 inches of rain during the next 5 days. However, only light rain will fall across the northern Plains, upper Midwest, and Southeast, while dry weather will prevail west of the Rockies.
The Western dryness will be accompanied by building heat, with the hot spell peaking early next week.
In contrast, cool air will overspread most areas east of the Rockies, with frost possible in the upper Midwest at the beginning of Memorial Day weekend.
Looking ahead, the 6- to 10-day outlook calls for the likelihood of near- or above-normal temperatures nationwide, except for cooler-than-normal conditions from the southern Rockies into the lower Mississippi Valley.
Meanwhile, below-normal rainfall across the northern Plains and Northwest should contrast with wetter-than-normal weather across much of the South, East, and lower Midwest.
